In memory of our brother and son, Robert Bagnell,
who died moments after being tasered by police in Vancouver, British Columbia on June 23, 2004. Bob was the 7th Canadian to die and the 110th in North America.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Clearly Sheriff Bob Grudek is feeling a little defensive. Last Tuesday he called a press conference and notified area media -- except the Citizen.

From what we can glean from reports of the event, Sheriff Bob spent a good deal of time bashing the Citizen's reporting and defending his deputies against the paper's "allegations of excessive force."

Grudek was very upset by the recent "Boys and Their Toys" editorial that criticized the marijuana eradication air-raids in which his department participated, and by the "Deputies gone wild?" story in the Sept. 2 edition. The press conference was his attempt at damage control.

Had the Citizen been notified, we would have had a few questions, but obviously that's why we weren't welcome. Much easier to control the message when the relevant questions aren't asked and you can put all the blame on lying, "politically-motivated" reporters.

One question we would have asked is, "Why aren't instances of use of force by the department documented and tracked?" Tasers and pepper sprays are considered "non-lethal force weapons" although both have resulted in injuries and deaths.

Law enforcement professional groups recommend their use be documented for statistical and procedural review and most agencies have such procedures in place. That our sheriff's office does not is not a reflection on the officers, but on management.

We also would have asked "Why did you violate the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act and not show us your department's Standard Operating Procedures for Tasers and pepper spray? You told us you have them. What are you hiding by not producing them, or is it they don't actually exist? And why all the stonewalling?"

One reporter wrote, "King wrote of several incidents in which he said excessive force was used." Other news outlets reported "allegations of excessive force." Did the sheriff say that or did the reporters just not read the story? There were no such statements in the article, not an allegation anywhere. What was in the story was documentation of police and sheriff department reports, and quotes from police officers, the sheriff and two of the men who were Tasered or pepper-sprayed.

The sheriff reportedly defended his deputies' actions in the three documented incidents as justified, and said, contrary to the report of the officer who brought in the diabetic man, that jailers didn't know the man was diabetic when he was Tasered several times. But they had been told and clearly endangered the life of a man who, with a blood sugar level of 14, was already near death.

The press conference also featured a film and photos showing officers wounded in the line of duty to make the point that non-compliant subjects endanger officers if not subdued with these weapons. The sheriff told reporters the weapons are a good alternative to using guns. We agree, but does that mean if the officers didn't have Tasers and pepper spray, the octogenarian sitting in his garden, the handcuffed drunk and the diabetic would have been shot?

These "non-lethal weapons" were designed to be used instead of guns, but they are still dangerous enough that they should be used judiciously and with restraint. Is CCSO using them at the first sign of non-cooperation? Without incidents being documented and tracked, we'll never know.

Grudek accuses "a select few who have the benefit and availability of space in our local media outlets," of "misreporting" and injecting "personal opinion."

It's easy to call someone a liar, but it holds more water when you specify what lies were told. We stand by every word in the Taser/pepper spray story; it's all well-documented. So our next question might have been, "What, specifically, in the story was inaccurate?" Think we would have stumped them on that one.

They got us on the "personal opinions" part, though. "Boys and Their Toys" was chock full of them, but an editorial is all about opinion. You may not like the opinion, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be expressed. And the fact is, that editorial reflected the views of many of the sheriff's constituents.

Most cops act professionally, but there are bullies and above-the-law cops in all departments. Better if they had a boss interested in weeding them out rather than giving blind, unconditional support.

If there are no bad apples in CCSO, congratulations; it's probably the cleanest police force on the planet.

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taser-Related Deaths = 1007+ in North America

See "A LIST OF THE DEAD"According to Taser International, the taser had nothing to do with any of these deaths. According to Amnesty International, the taser has been identified as either a cause or contributing factor in at least 60 of them. That number would be higher; however medical examiners and coroners are often not impartial but are instead biased in favour of the Crown or, as has been shown, they are under tremendous pressure from - among others - Taser International, to make a particular finding.See Judge rules for Taser in cause-of-death decisions

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My Brother - Robert Bagnell June 27, 1959 - June 23, 2004

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2) Until such time as independent and unbiased study into the "real world" safety implications of Tasers has been properly completed, a moratorium must be imposed upon these weapons.

3) If, after independent and unbiased study has been completed, the Taser is going to remain in the police arsenal, it must be placed at a level equal to lethal force on the continuum of force and used only as a second-to-last resort.

4) Safety standards must be developed for Tasers. There are currently no Canadian safety standards in place for this weapon.

5) Police must not be allowed to investigate themselves but must be subject to independent and unbiased civilian oversight.

6) Families of people who die in police custody in Canada must be provided with funding so that they may be properly represented by legal counsel.

07. Robert Bagnell, 44 – Vancouver, BC - June 23, 2004 - X26 - "Official" cause of death: Consistent with restraint-associated cardiac arrest due to acute cocaine intoxication and psychosis. Bob's autopsy report showed marks on his body consistent to multiple taser shots, which incidently could not be affirmed by the pathologist because she could not explain those marks.

09. Samuel Truscott, 43 – Kingston, ON - August 8, 2004 - X26 - "Official" cause of death: Heart attack cause by drug overdose and "I can state categorically that the Taser did not play any role whatsoever in his death" said Chief Coroner for Ontario, Jim Cairns

24. Michael Langan, 17, Winnipeg, MB - July 22, 2008 - tasered 1 time - the autopsy report says Langan's death was caused by a heart arrhythmia brought on by the Taser shocks

25. Sean Reilly, 42 - Brampton, ON - September 17, 2008 - Peel Regional Police - X26 - tasered 2 times - the inquest jury will determine the official cause of death, however, “the forensic evidence indicated that the force used by the officers, including the Taser discharge, did not contribute to his death"

27. Trevor Grimolfson, 38 - Edmonton, AB - October 29, 2008, X26 - According to sources, after he was pepper sprayed, Trevor was tasered directly on the chest 5 times and tasered on the back of the neck 2 more times - Edmonton police said he was only tasered 2 times but testing on the tasers proves otherwise - "Official" cause of death: excited delirium brought on by drugs

29. Grant William Prentice, 40 - Brooks, AB - May 6, 2009 - RCMP - tasered 2 times - "Official" cause of death: acute cocaine toxicity and "the medical examiner also concluded the taser did not play a role in the death"

Ain't it the truth!

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80% percent of the population could be moved in either direction

Human rights activist Susan Sontag, when asked what she had learned from the Holocaust, said that 10 percent of any population is cruel, no matter what, and that 10 percent is merciful, no matter what, and that the remaining 80 percent could be moved in either direction.

THE Successes AREN'T the Problem

"The issue is not whether or not the taser can be used in a high percentage of cases to reduce death and/or physical trauma to officers and civilians alike. The issue is whether or not it's OK to kill the rest through ignorance and rationalization just because it's a small percentage ... The successes aren't the problem - the failures are. They're being told that tasers are nonlethal, so they blast away until people can't move. They're killing people by accident." Dave Siegler, father of Raymond Siegler, who died on February 12, 2004

The artistic side of Robert Bagnell

WE KNOW THIS MUCH IS TRUE

ROBERT ANGLEN

Robert Anglen, a reporter with The Arizona Republic, documented the first 167 Taser-related deaths. Mr. Anglen launched a journalistic investigation of Taser International, linking the Taser to multiple deaths, among other eye-openers.

At the 2005 Arizona Press Club Awards, Mr. Anglen won first place in the Investigative reporting category. He was the recipient of the Don Bolles Award for his report entitled "Taser tied to 'independent' study that backs stun gun'. “As part of an extraordinarily thorough investigation of Taser International, Anglen uncovered ‘smoking gun’ documents that showed the manufacturer was heavily involved in the key study that purported the devices are safe. Anglen also uncovered conflicts of interest and documented wide-spread problems with Taser safety — a matter of national and international public interest.”

In 2006, Mr. Anglen was a runner up for the Arizona Press Club's Virg Hill Journalist of the Year award. Peter Bhatia of The Oregonian wrote “Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter, pure and simple. Clearly, he is a reporter who, once he sinks his teeth into something, stays with it until the story is done. His ongoing work around the company that makes Tasers speaks to that."